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Sarah Kraemer

Welcome to our CaringBridge website. We are using it to keep family and friends updated in one place. We appreciate your support and words of hope and encouragement. Thank you for visiting.As most of you know I had a battle on my hands when I applied for Social Security disability. After almost a decade of appeals, lawyers, advocates and judges I finally was granted disability. Never in my life did I dream that Medicaid would come along and tell me that if I wanted to continue to have health coverage through them I needed to get a job.Everything worked out until this past August, when I was diagnosed with Renal Cancer. I had surgery on Sept 1, 2016, they removed my right kidney. The tumor had consumed 80% of my kidney and weighed in at about 6 1/2 pounds! Needless to say this whole thing has taken a major toll on me physically, mentally, emotionally and financially. For some reason I thought that after all the hell with my back, diabetes and COPD, I couldn't possibly get anything else....well I am living proof that things can ALWAYS get worse!Don't get me wrong, I am extremely thankful that I have a place to live and it is not in a car or in a tent somewhere; but honestly, I have no idea how people make it.Each month after I pay my bills I have $127 left for food and gasoline to get to and from my MULTIPLE doctor appointments. As I said, I am VERY thankful for what I do have, but the longer my battle becomes, the more difficult it is to get by.